


Back To How It Was

by blipblorpsnork



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Angst, Dying relationships, M/M, Post canon, Shrimpshipping, Strong Language, alcohol mention, break ups, the end of something that could have been beautiful
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-31
Updated: 2019-05-31
Packaged: 2020-03-30 23:12:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 963
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19037461
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blipblorpsnork/pseuds/blipblorpsnork
Summary: "We could just go back to being friends.""No. You know that never works."





	Back To How It Was

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by [this prompt/starter list](https://autemlunae.tumblr.com/post/160578610914/soft-bittersweet-sentence-starters-it-was-always).

“I don’t… Think things are working anymore.”

The words were quiet, unexpected but not sudden, underwhelming but hard-hitting. They came softly from the couch coupled with sorrowful, pensive blue eyes behind thick horn-framed glasses, glazed over with white wine and tears.

Rex looked up from his phone, thumbs stilling over the virtual keyboard, hovering over but not touching the screen. His skin felt like an electric current was running across it over and over, sending the hairs on his arms on end, twisting his stomach into a mass of writhing tissue. He knew immediately what Weevil was talking about.

Oh did he know.

“I don’t know what—”

“Please… Don’t.” Weevil cut him off, voice demure and tired, a stark contrast to the slightly strangled, slightly raspy tone Rex’s own voice had had. “You know what I’m talking about.”

Rex was frozen in his chair. He knew. He knew he knew he knew.

“All we do anymore is fight. We argue over everything. Things that warrant arguing, things that are stupid and don’t matter. We argue when you misunderstand something, we argue when I’m anxious, we argue over things neither of us can control, we argue about dinner and about clothes and laundry and dishes.” Fresh tears puddled along his lower eyelid but they did not fall. He blinked angrily at them. “We don’t even just argue we _fight_. _Everything_ with you is a fucking fight lately.”

“It’s not like I go out of my way to piss you off.” The words were immediately defensive, falling into the same familiar pattern by rote. Eyes narrowed, bangs protective and safe in front of them, fingers gripping his now-black phone screen tightly.

“I know you don’t I just can’t fucking stand it when—”

“You can’t stand anything I do! Hell I could wash the fucking dishes and you’d bitch at me like you just said!” He was raising his voice and he didn’t give a single fuck. Anger whited out his brain and washed it through with something hot and blind.

“I don’t bitch at you for doing the dishes I bitch at you for never fucking doing them!”

“God you’re such a _cunt_ just shut up! It’s not like I do _nothing_ —”

“You don’t put any effort into this house or this goddamn relationship—”

“—always working on things but that’s never enough for you—”

“—don’t you fucking see what you’re doing you fucking idiot?!”

“It’s not my fault you scream at me over everything—!”

“—NOT _MY_ FAULT—!!”

“—DON’T UNDERSTAND WHY YOU CAN’T JUST _FUCK OFF_!!”

“All I’m trying to do is _talk_ to you!” Weevil’s final shout was broken by tears. Now they fell, and oh did they fall, streaming down his cheeks and drip drip dripping into his wine glass, across his bow-tie, down his shirt and onto the backs of his hands. His face was red, redder than anything but these days that wasn’t so different. He was always red faced, or crying, or screaming, or too overwhelmed to do anything. His happiness was fleeting and so was Rex’s and neither of them knew what to do.

“I just! Want to talk to you!” He was choking words out through sobs now, trying desperately to remain coherent, keep his sentences cohesive. Rex was once again silent, eyes downcast, cheeks burning with fury, chest aching with anxiety and hatred—hatred for himself, for his partner, for fucking everything.

Hatred that had been growing between them for months.

“But you never fucking listen anymore! You just jump to being defensive like the thick-headed asshole you are—” He bowled through Rex’s knee-jerk angry protest, voice raising in volume to be heard, “and then you turn it around on me and every single time we just fight! We always _fight_! I’m so tired!!”

The silence that hung between them was tinny and rang with too many unspoken words. It rang with the awful ringing of just-ceased screams. It rang with love that used to be there.

“I’m so… _Tired_ , Rex.”

Dry eyes, dry heart, dry, dry, dry.

“I’ve already arranged things with my parents.”

Rex felt like he’d just been punched in the chest, but he’d seen it coming. He knew it would happen eventually. He knew this day would be there, sooner, far sooner than later.

Acidity was just in both of their natures. Poison ran in their veins. They were bleach and ammonia, deadly when together and dangerous when apart. They didn’t mix.

“I’ll be heading out in a week to head back home. Okay? We can’t do this.”

Yeah. He knew that too. He’d known it for a while. Oil on water, oil on water.

“... _I_ can’t do this. Okay?”

Rex nodded mutely, idly turning his phone on and off like a mindless zombie waiting for a prompt from his mastermind scientist, waiting for someone to pull his strings or pull away the curtains and reveal it was all a ruse, a joke, a horrible fucking prank.

There was no double sided mirror here.

Weevil settled back down, wiping his tears onto the backs of his hands and the blanket he’d pulled up to his chest. He stared forlornly at Rex for a while, not knowing what to say or how to handle his reaction. More tears slid silently down his face, cold and stinging his chaffed cheeks lightly, but he just brushed them away.

Without a word he slipped his earbuds back into his ears and picked up his glass of wine. Downing the rest in a few small gulps, he poured himself a full glass then pressed the action button on his Switch Joycon and started up his insect documentary once more. He’d leave the account information with Rex when he went back home.

At least then he’d be left with something.

**Author's Note:**

> This started as an inspired piece and turned into a hell of a vent piece. It's interesting; SasuNaruSasu used to be my go-to pairing. I'd always write for them, project onto them both, and so on. Since I've fallen out of the Naruto fandom (purely through not interacting with it and not for any negative reasons) and have been so Special Interest territory with YGO DM, that pairing has become these boyos here. I'd actually have thought it would be puppyshipping! I'm way more like Seto than I like to realize, to be blunt, roleplayed him for a couple years, all that jazz, but man oh man. Shrimpy boys it is. Anyways I hope you enjoyed the fucking pain and I hope I'll see y'all soon. If you like what I do and want to help support a disabled autistic nonbinary dude, check out my bio for a link. Love y'all. Thanks for always being here.


End file.
